Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho faces a choice of targets for his new No 9 - so how do Romelu Lukaku, Andrea Belotti and Alvaro Morata match up?

  • Manchester United are in pursuit of a No 9 to fill the void of Zlatan Ibrahimovic 
  • Manager Jose Mourinho has honed in on three known targets across Europe
  • Alvaro Morata and Andrea Belotti are on United’s radar, as is Romelu Lukaku
  • Sportsmail takes a look at all three and why Mourinho is keen on them 

Manchester United’s pursuit of a No 9 to fill the void of Zlatan Ibrahimovic has seen Jose Mourinho home in on three known targets.

Alvaro Morata and Andrea Belotti are on United’s radar, although Romelu Lukaku is considered the most likely to seal a switch.

Here, Sportsmail takes a look at all three and why Mourinho is keen on them.

Alvaro Morata is among Jose Mourinho's targets to fill the Manchester United No 9 slot

Alvaro Morata is among Jose Mourinho's targets to fill the Manchester United No 9 slot

Andrea Belotti has also been touted to replace the injured Zlatan Ibrahimovic at United

Andrea Belotti has also been touted to replace the injured Zlatan Ibrahimovic at United

Everton forward Romelu Lukaku is considered the most likely to seal a switch out of the trio

Everton forward Romelu Lukaku is considered the most likely to seal a switch out of the trio

ROMELU LUKAKU - Everton


The Belgian will be hugely disappointed to have seen Harry Kane pip him to the Golden Boot in the final week of the season, but his reputation is soaring with every passing campaign.

Lukaku remains raw - he can be loose in possession at times - but his brute power and quick feet make him a completely different proposition to the teenager Mourinho allowed to leave Chelsea.

Chelsea are hopeful of prising him away from Goodison Park themselves, and believe they will win the race for his signature.

Mourinho sold Lukaku while manager of Chelsea but could now sign him as United boss

Mourinho sold Lukaku while manager of Chelsea but could now sign him as United boss

Lukaku is rated at £100million, hardly surprising after three consecutive seasons in which he has excelled. Agent Mino Raiola told Sportsmail Everton are yet to set their price, but offers are primed.

Raiola also told TalkSPORT: ‘Lukaku had a promise that if certain clubs came this summer that he could leave.

‘We are not in concrete talks with anybody at this moment, but hearing the market I think some clubs will contact Everton.’

Lukaku is rated at £100m, unsurprising after three straight seasons in which he has excelled

Lukaku is rated at £100m, unsurprising after three straight seasons in which he has excelled

ANDREA BELOTTI - Torino

Only Edin Dzeko and Dries Mertens scored more goals than Belotti’s 26 in Serie A - the pair in teams which create more chances than Torino - and his stock has risen dramatically.

A physical frontman, the 23-year-old is good in the air as well as holding up play and would, on paper, seem a decent fit to replace Ibrahimovic.

He has created his fair share of chances for Torino as well, ending the season with 55, and that is something Mourinho will like.

Torino man Belotti's physicality and hold up play makes him comparable to Ibrahimovic

Torino man Belotti's physicality and hold up play makes him comparable to Ibrahimovic

The amount of runners United have at their disposal - Marcus Rashford, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Jesse Lingard, Anthony Martial and the rest - makes a clever striker a necessity.

His release clause stands at £86m which is an extraordinary amount of money for someone who has just one prolific top-flight season under his belt.

United should be able to negotiate that down if circumstances saw them turn to Belotti, but they are thought to be cautious about him given the difficulties other Italian strikers have endured in the Premier League.

Belotti's release clause stands at £86m - a huge amount given he has had one great season

Belotti's release clause stands at £86m - a huge amount given he has had one great season

ALVARO MORATA - Real Madrid

A relatively new name in the frame but Morata is possibly the best fit out of the three to really succeed at Old Trafford, but it might be too late.

The ex-Juventus striker’s fiancee Alice Campello, is angling for a move back to Italy. AC Milan are interested as they continue their rebuild.

From a United perspective, there is also the added problem of David de Gea when talking to Real Madrid about any player. 

Negotiations between United and Real Madrid are complicated by the David de Gea drama

Negotiations between United and Real Madrid are complicated by the David de Gea drama

Mourinho believes De Gea wants to stay in the North West despite talk of a transfer to Spain but his name is likely to crop up almost immediately should talks happen regarding Morata.

That will represent a source of frustration. Morata - who has failed to nail down a regular starting berth under Zinedine Zidane - is exactly the sort of striker United crave.

His stats outdo both Lukaku and Belotti this season, albeit having played fewer games. A better minutes-per-goal ratio, a higher percentage of shots on target and a healthier conversion rate. 

Morata has failed to nail down a starting spot at Real, but is more likely to move to Italy

Morata has failed to nail down a starting spot at Real, but is more likely to move to Italy

MANCHESTER UNITED'S SUMMER STRIKER TARGETS - BY THE STATISTICS 
League data - 2016-17 Lukaku Per 90 Belotti Per 90 Morata Per 90
Games Played 37 - 35 - 26 -
Games Started 36 - 34 - 14 -
Minutes Played 3,267 - 3,071 - 1,331 -
Goals 25 0.7 26 0.8 15 1
Mins/Goal 130.68 - 118.12 - 88.73 -
Shots, Total (inc. Blocks) 110 3 130 3.8 55 3.7
Shots, on Target 55 1.5 49 1.4 30 2
Shot Conversion Rate (inc. Blocks) 22.73 - 20 - 27.27 -
Assists 6 0.2 7 0.2 4 0.3
Chances Created (inc. assists) 47 1.3 55 1.6 17 1.1
Passes 965 26.6 705 20.7 358 24.2
Passes Successful 632 17.4 529 15.5 282 19.1
Passing Accuracy 65.49 - 75.04 - 78.77 -
Touches 1,518 41.8 1,351 39.6 624 42.2